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Democrats smash fundraising records after Ginsburg’s deathWho is Amy Coney Barrett, Trump’s likely court pick?US Covid deaths near 200,000Evidence shows mail slowdowns after Trump ally took overSign up for our First Thing newsletter 2.31pm BST This is Joan Greve in Washington, taking over for Martin Belam.Trump acknowledged politics was affecting his decision on who to nominate to the supreme court, during his Fox and Friends interview this morning.Trump admits that politics are playing in a role in him considering judges from Michigan and Florida as RBG's possible replacement: "I try not to say so. I think probably automatically it is." pic.twitter.com/QCeYn1iqhs 1.55pm BST In his interview this morning on Fox and Friends Donald Trump has baselessly cast doubts on the last wishes of the late US supreme court justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. My colleague Martin Pengelly has more:Donald Trump has attempted to cast doubt on Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s dying wish, baselessly claiming a statement released by the supreme court justice’s family was written by Adam Schiff, Nancy Pelosi or Chuck Schumer, prominent Democrats in Congress.The move is likely to anger many who will see it as disrespectful to the millions of Americans mourning Ginsburg’s death, as well as a tasteless attack on the legacy of the pioneering woman justice.Trump on RBG's reported dying wish that next pres fills her seat: "I don't know that she said that, or was that written out by Adam Schiff and Schumer and Pelosi. I would be more inclined to the second ... But that sounds like a Schumer deal or maybe a Pelosi or Shifty Schiff." pic.twitter.com/zE979kK2Q3 Related: Trump doubts Ruth Bader Ginsburg's dying wish, claiming Democrats wrote it Continue reading...

Spectators at Teatro Real say they were crammed into seats without space between them Coronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageA performance of Verdi’s A Masked Ball was abandoned in Madrid on Sunday night after audience members protested over the lack of social distancing measures – especially for those in cheaper seats.One member of the audience at the Teatro Real opera house said there were rows of more than a dozen people without any gaps between them. Continue reading...

Duchess’s lawyers reject claim made by Mail publisher in latest hearing of legal actionThe Duke and Duchess of Sussex did not collaborate with the authors of a recent book about them, Meghan’s lawyers told the high court in the latest hearing of her legal action against the Mail on Sunday.Meghan, 39, is suing Associated Newspapers (ANL), publisher of the Mail on Sunday and Mail Online, over articles that reproduced part of her handwritten letter to her estranged father, 76-year-old Thomas Markle, in August 2018. Continue reading...

Elephants may have ingested toxins produced by bacteria found in waterholesHundreds of elephants died in Botswana earlier this year from ingesting toxins produced by cyanobacteria, according to government officials who say they will be testing waterholes for algal blooms next rainy season to reduce the risk of another mass die-off.The mysterious death of 350 elephants in the Okavango delta between May and June baffled conservationists, with leading theories suggesting they were killed by a rodent virus known as EMC (encephalomyocarditis) or toxins from algal blooms. Continue reading...

Hikvision’s surveillance tech has also been installed in leisure centres in LondonSurveillance cameras made by Hikvision, the Chinese company that has been implicated in grave human rights violations and has been blacklisted by the US government, are being used across the UK, from leisure centres in London to school toilets in west Norfolk.While use of the surveillance cameras had already rung alarm bells in the British parliament last year, use of the cameras has expanded in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic despite allegations by the US government that the company’s cameras have been used to monitor Uighurs and other Muslim minorities in China who are being held in internment camps. Continue reading...

Lloyds and Barclays among banks taking action due to lack of post-Brexit trade dealThousands of Britons living in the EU will have their UK bank accounts closed by the end of the year because of the UK’s failure to agree a post-Brexit trade deal.Lloyds, Barclays and Coutts have informed retail and business customers that they will lose their accounts before or when the Brexit transition period ends on 31 December and more banks are expected to follow suit. Continue reading...

Users highlight examples of feature automatically focusing on white faces over black onesTwitter has apologised for a “racist” image cropping algorithm, after users discovered the feature was automatically focusing on white faces over black ones.The company says it had tested the service for bias before it started using it, but now accepts that it didn’t go far enough. Continue reading...

US to issue sanctions despite being told by European powers it has no legal power to do soDonald Trump is due to issue an executive order on Monday imposing sanctions on Iranians linked to their country’s energy industry, despite key European powers saying the US does not have the legal power to do so.The US president will issue the sanctions on dozens of people and declare that anyone trading arms with Iran will remain subject to sanctions beyond October, the date the embargo was due to be lifted. Continue reading...

Country should be prepared for significant restrictions for next six months, says Chris WhittyCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageThe UK has “turned a corner” for the worse and is on course for up to 50,000 new daily cases of Covid-19 by mid-October, which could lead to 200 deaths a day by the following month, the chief medical officer for England has warned.The country should be prepared for significant restrictions for the next six months, over the winter period when the virus can be expected to flourish, Prof Chris Whitty said. Continue reading...

In 2006, the 20-year-old was killed on the orders of family members. Ahead of an ITV drama on the case, her sister reflects on the police responseAs a television drama of the real-life investigation into the murder of a young woman by her family airs this month, her sister told the Guardian little had changed since Banaz Mahmod was killed in 2006.“Lessons have not been learned. Banaz is not the first ‘honour’ killing and she won’t be the last,” says Payzee Mahmod, a British Kurd, who was a teenager when her sister disappeared from her south London home. Banaz had gone to the police five times for help. Continue reading...

Investigation found department’s operations ‘fell short of ethical standards’ after land was valued at just $3.1m Taxpayers stumped up $26.7m too much for land owned by billionaire dairy farmers to build a second runway at Western Sydney airport after 2050, the auditor general has found.In a scathing report, released on Monday, the Australian National Audit Office (ANAO) found the $30m price tag paid by the infrastructure department was almost 10 times its fair value. Continue reading...

Victory for Chloé Zhao’s drama starring Frances McDormand means it now looks certain to get a best picture Oscar nominationNomadland, the recession-era retirees study starring Frances McDormand, has won the Toronto film festival people’s choice award, adding the influential prize to the Venice Golden Lion it was awarded a week ago.The Toronto award is much prized in the industry, as it counts a significant number of Oscar best picture awards and nominees among its recent winners, including Green Book (2018), Room (2015) and 12 Years a Slave (2013). Nomadland’s director Chloé Zhao is also the first woman to win the award since 2011, when Nadine Labaki’s Where Do We Go Now? triumphed. Nomadland would now appear to be a major contender for end-of-year awards, with a best picture Oscar nomination a virtual certainty Continue reading...

Chemical headaches, plant sirens – these were the constant background to my home and school life. My community is on the climate frontlineMy teacher first taught me about global warming in the third grade. She explained how an increase in greenhouse gases increased the amount of heat that could be trapped in our atmosphere. We discussed how climate change is melting the ice caps polar bears call home, leading to their extinction. We didn’t discuss how the climate crisis was already at our homes.I grew up with the smell of freshly made salsa from chiles picked from our backyard garden, the bright colors of fruit gifted to us by neighbors, and the sound of off-key singing to Joan Sebastian and Selena Quintanilla. At school, my friends and I slipped between English and Spanish, moving between the topics of our English essay to la quinceañera de nuestra mejor amiga with ease. But looming over my vibrant community was, and is, the fossil fuel industry. Continue reading...

Seven Generation Z climate activists from across the United States come together to curate a special edition of the Guardian US. Read their section hereGeneration Z didn’t cause the climate crisis, but we’re paying for it. The damage caused by global heating is already doing untold damage to the entire planet, disproportionately hurting BIPOC (Black, Indigenous and people of color). For our generation, the toll isn’t just physical, but mental: solastalgia, the stress caused by environmental changes to one’s home, is on the rise.We are seven first-time voters from diverse backgrounds across the United States who have come together to curate a special climate edition of the Guardian. We want to bring attention to the physical and mental burdens that our generation is saddled with due to the negligence of past generations. We want to highlight environmental justice during this election season. And we will be keeping environmental issues in mind when we all vote. – Alice Shinn Continue reading...

Official told Matthew Carney she would be taken to undisclosed location over alleged visa breachAn ABC journalist has broken his silence on how he and his family were intimidated by Chinese authorities in 2018, including a warning that his 14-year-old daughter might be taken away to an undisclosed location.Matthew Carney, the ABC’s former China bureau chief, said he feared “serious trouble” when he and his wife were told to bring their daughter to the ministry of public security in north Beijing for questioning over an alleged breach of visa rules. Continue reading...

Louis DeJoy’s policies, which he said were intended to boost efficiency, led to widespread outcry this summerThe United States Postal Service (USPS) saw a severe decline in the rate of on-time delivery of first-class mail after Louis DeJoy took over as postmaster general, according to new data obtained by the Guardian that provides some of the most detailed insight yet into widespread mail delays this summer.Shortly after taking the helm, DeJoy - a major Republican donor with no prior USPS experience - implemented operational changes he said were intended to make the financially beleaguered agency more efficient. Those changes, which included an effort to get postal trucks to run on time, led to severe delays and widespread public outcry this summer. Continue reading...

Fever, runny nose, headache? Lost your sense of taste or smell? Your guide to differentiating between the three illnessesCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageWith winter approaching, the UK is entering the traditional seasons for colds and flu, with the additional complication this year that symptoms of those two illnesses can be broadly similar to those experienced by people who have caught the coronavirus and may be at risk of spreading it.The NHS in England has produced a guide to differentiate between the three types of illnesses, which health experts hope will make it clearer to people whether they have an illness they would have most likely brushed aside last year, but which this year might lead them to think they need to self-isolate or seek to have a coronavirus test. Continue reading...

Standard Chartered stock also falls after claims banking sector handled $2tn in potentially corrupt transactionsShares in the banking sector have fallen after media reports that some of the world’s largest banks moved large sums of allegedly illicit funds over nearly two decades, despite red flags about the origins of the money.Barclays fell by 4% in early trading in London on Monday and HSBC and Standard Chartered both lost 3%. Earlier in Hong Kong, HSBC dropped more than 4%, taking the shares to their lowest level since May 1995. Continue reading...

Minister also rejects airport’s statement PM flew into Perugia in past fortnightCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageOne of Boris Johnson’s ministers has denied a report in the Italian media that the UK prime minister made a secret trip to the country less than a fortnight ago, a claim Downing Street has also rejected as “completely untrue”.Asked if Johnson had landed in Perugia in the past two weeks, which the Umbrian airport said in a statement had happened, Grant Shapps, the transport minister, told Sky News: “Not that I’m aware of. I think it’s mistaken, as far as I’m aware.” Continue reading...

Bacteriophages were superseded by modern antibiotics, but scientists believe they could be key to conquering antimicrobial resistanceIt is, say enthusiasts, the cure that the world forgot. An old therapy that could take on the new superbugs.Discovered in 1917 by French Canadian biologist Félix d’Hérelle, phages – or bacteriophages – are tiny viruses that are natural predators of bacteria. In many countries they were supplanted during the second world war by antibiotics but continued to be used for decades in eastern Europe. Continue reading...

The most diverse field in Emmys history garnered several awards for black actors and a full sweep for a Canadian sitcomEmmy winners 2020: the full listIt was uncharted waters for the 72nd Emmy awards – the first major acting awards show held since the pandemic began, a strange and subdued ceremony in which stars accepted awards on Zoom. But unwelcome new methods (the telecast required more than 100 live feeds), and the end of former Emmys juggernauts Game of Thrones and Veep, ushered in a celebration of new series and talent: Canadian comedy Schitt’s Creek swept the comedy awards, HBO’s Succession dominated in drama and the evening’s most-nominated show, HBO’s prescient, eerie Watchmen, cleaned up in the limited series category. Related: Emmy winners 2020: the full list Continue reading...

An unusual year has led to an unusual format for the glossy awards ceremony with stars from Succession, Watchmen and Schitt’s Creek battling it out from home 1.34am BST Oof another spectacularly unfunny bit between Kimmel and an IRL Tracee Ellis Ross, ironic given the category. But yes, another big win for Schitt’s Creek from Dan Levy who stars in and writes for one of the most popular shows of the night. 1.29am BST Aaand the Schitt’s Creek Toronto cast party might as well be the actual Emmys ceremony at this stage. Eugene Levy has been handed the second award of the night by a Hazmat suit-wearing somebody for his role in the final season of the offbeat comedy series. Continue reading...

England’s chief medical officer to warn of a ‘very challenging winter’; more than one in five Covid-19 deaths globally is in US; Lebanon sees record case rise. Follow the latest updatesTrump health official says ‘biology independent of politics’ as US nears 200,000 deathsUK at ‘critical point’ over Covid-19, top scientists to tell publicMutant virus: should we be worried that Sars-CoV-2 is changing‘Quite a year’: couples on being separated by the Covid pandemicSee all our coronavirus coverage 1.28am BST Get in touch on Twitter @helenrsullivan or via email: helen.sullivan@theguardian.com. 1.21am BST The state of Victoria in Australia is reporting a steady downward trend in daily coronavirus cases, putting the it on course to ease more restrictions by next week.The two-week average rise in cases in Melbourne, the state capital, dropped below 35 on Monday, on track to meet a target of below 50 cases by 28 September when the authorities have said they may relax restrictions in the city.Melbourne, Australia’s second largest city, is on an extended hard lockdown until 28 September, but authorities lifted some restrictions last week allowing residents to leave their homes for longer periods for exercise and shortened a nightly curfew. Continue reading...

Demand for housing could fall by 232,000 dwellings over next three years due to international border closures and decline in population growth The coronavirus pandemic could cut demand for housing in Australia by between 129,000 and 232,000 dwellings over the next three years, research by a federal government agency shows.The National Housing Finance and Investment Corporation’s study found that population growth could be cut by 214,000 between 2019 and 2021, a 0.8% decline only surpassed by the first world war and the unwinding of the 1971 baby boom. Continue reading...

Guardian readers tell their stories of being kept apart by illness, work and closed bordersCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageThe coronavirus pandemic has lead to airport closures, cancelled flights, and some countries not allowing citizens to leave.For couples used to being apart for short periods the restrictions have meant being apart for much longer. For those from different countries, they may have had to choose between visiting or caring for family and being together. Some have been kept apart by illness or essential work. Continue reading...

Charity says world’s fast-shrinking carbon budget should be used to improve lot of poorestThe wealthiest 1% of the world’s population were responsible for the emission of more than twice as much carbon dioxide as the poorer half of the world from 1990 to 2015, according to new research.Carbon dioxide emissions rose by 60% over the 25-year period, but the increase in emissions from the richest 1% was three times greater than the increase in emissions from the poorest half. Continue reading...

Trump promises to nominate woman within a week‘I will fight!’: mourners’ vow at supreme court vigilRobert Reich: For McConnell, power trumps principleObituary: ‘Formidably clever with a superhuman capacity for work’Sign up for our First Thing newsletter 10.28pm BST Here’s a rundown of Sunday’s events. We’ll be back tomorrow for all Monday’s news. 10.19pm BST The overall total of coronavirus deaths in California surpassed 15,000 on Sunday even as the state has shown improvements across a number of key indicators.The Associated Press reports:A tally by Johns Hopkins University put California’s death toll at 15,027 on Sunday, the fourth-highest in the country. New York has suffered by far the most deaths - 33,087 - followed by New Jersey, which has about half as many. Texas is third.California has had the most confirmed virus cases in the country with about 775,000, but key indicators have fallen dramatically since a spike that started after Memorial Day weekend prompted statewide shutdowns of businesses. Continue reading...

Mark Johnson given 60 stitches for deep wound in leg‘He wanted to roll so he could start dismembering,’ artist says In several decades as a professional artist, painting Florida’s marine life, Mark Johnson has developed a pretty good eye for detail. Now the outdoorsman whose website offers “realistic portrayals created primarily from memory and imagination” is about to start work on a gritty new work: an alligator with rows of perfect white teeth, clamped on the thigh of a man out walking his dog.It will be a self-portrait. On a morning stroll with his golden retriever Rex along a canal near his home in Port St Lucie, Johnson was attacked by an 8ft 6in alligator that lunged from the water, raced towards him and chomped down on his leg, causing a deep wound that required 60 stitches. Continue reading...

Now is a time for courage. It will take sacrifices from everyone for us all to survive, the president of the Marshall Islands writesMy country joined the United Nations nearly 30 years ago, in September 1991. But unless my fellow member states take action, we may also be forced from it: the first country to see our land swept away by climate change.As the UN general assembly meets in New York, celebrating the 75th anniversary of its formation, we must ask: how many of the 193 nations that it brings together will survive to reach its centenary? Continue reading...

Death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg rocks presidential raceTrump will pick woman; McConnell promises vote‘I will fight!’: mourners’ vow at supreme court vigil Opinion: Democrats can still have the last laughJoe Biden, the Democratic presidential nominee, made an urgent plea on Sunday to the conscience of Senate Republicans, asking them to defy Donald Trump and refuse to ram through his nominee to the supreme court before the November election. Related: Rushing to replace Ruth Bader Ginsburg, McConnell shows power trumps principle | Robert Reich Continue reading...

Among those named in reports is Paul Manafort, former political strategist for Donald TrumpThousands of documents detailing $2 trillion (£1.55tn) of potentially corrupt transactions that were washed through the US financial system have been leaked to an international group of investigative journalists.The leak focuses on more than 2,000 suspicious activity reports (SARs) filed with the US government’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN). Continue reading...

Owners of major retail businesses and airports urge Treasury to think againCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageUK retailers, hoteliers and airport chiefs have warned the chancellor that scrapping tax-free shopping for international tourists has put 70,000 jobs in jeopardy.Earlier this month the Treasury said that the retail scheme, which enables non-EU visitors to reclaim VAT paid on their purchases, would finish at the end of December. The Treasury says it is making use of the end of the Brexit transition period to bring personal duty and tax systems in line with international norms. Continue reading...

A further feud has emerged just weeks before the US election after the death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Donald Trump is advocating that the seat be filled with a ‘very brilliant’ woman as soon as possible. However, Democrats are rallying in an attempt to prevent Trump filling the seat until after the election. Joe Biden and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez have said Republicans should follow the precedent that GOP legislators set in 2016 by refusing to consider a supreme court choice in the run-up to an election. If the Republicans were to get their way it could result in a conservative majority on the supreme court for decades to comeSupreme court: Democrats rally in bid to stop Trump filling Ginsburg’s seat Continue reading...

Labour MP criticises Cummings and says Tory government has dented UK’s standing in the worldBoris Johnson’s law-breaking Brexit bill is straight out of the Donald Trump playbook, and leaves justice secretary Robert Buckland looking “a very small figure,” says shadow justice secretary David Lammy.As the controversial internal market bill returns to the House of Commons this week, the prime minister appears to have bought off most Tory rebels by promising a parliamentary vote before the powers in it would be used. Continue reading...

Rights coalition calls on mayors to withdraw from U20, which coincides with anniversary of Jamal Khashoggi’s murderMainly leftwing mayors of some of the world’s biggest cities are being urged to boycott a G20 urban summit hosted by Saudi Arabia on the 2nd anniversary of the murder of the journalist Jamal Khashoggi.The Urban 20 (U20) is being held as part of the Saudi Arabian chairmanship of this year’s G20. Among the mayors slated to attend include, Berlin’s Michael Müller, London’s Sadiq Khan, New York’s Bill de Blasio, Paris’s Anne Hidalgo, Rome’s Virginia Raggi as well as the mayors of Los Angeles and Madrid. Continue reading...

San Francisco judge cites free speech concernsTrump backs TikTok Oracle deal which may include WalmartA US judge has blocked the Trump administration from requiring Apple and Google to remove Chinese-owned messaging app WeChat for downloads by late on Sunday.US magistrate judge Laurel Beeler in San Francisco said in an order that WeChat users who filed a lawsuit “have shown serious questions going to the merits of the first amendment claim, the balance of hardships tips in the plaintiffs’ favor.”. Continue reading...

Both sides prepare for winter with little hope of diplomatic outcome to border disputeAt an altitude of almost 15,000ft, the residents of Chushul village make their way across the bleak and unforgiving territory of the Indian state of Ladakh.With unwieldy and overstuffed duffel bags, rice sacks, heavy fuel cans and bamboo canes strapped to their backs, they trudge upwards to a Himalayan mountain peak known as Black Top, where hundreds of Indian army tents are stationed on the horizon. Continue reading...

Protesters call for regional president who blamed ‘way of life of immigrants’ for rise to resign Coronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverage By midday on Sunday, the chants of “Unity!” and “Healthcare!” that echoed around a busy crossroads in north-east Madrid had given rise to a more specific demand: “Ayuso resign!”On Friday, Isabel Díaz Ayuso, the president of the Madrid region, announced that 850,000 people – many of them living in some of the poorest parts of the city and surrounding area – would be placed in partial lockdown from Monday in an attempt to arrest the second wave of the virus. Continue reading...

More than a third of coronavirus intensive care patients are from ethnic minoritiesCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageA third of coronavirus patients in intensive care are from black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds, prompting the head of the British Medical Association to warn that government inaction will be responsible for further disproportionate deaths.Chaand Nagpaul, the BMA Council chair, was the first public figure to call for an inquiry into whether and why there was a disparity between BAME and white people in Britain in terms of how they were being affected by the pandemic, in April. Continue reading...

From its early days as a whimsical, arthouse space through more recent waves of influencers and pool inflatables, the world’s favourite photo-sharing app has rewired society for good and badThe most-downloaded app of 2010 made the photographs you took on your phone look way cooler. Vintage-effect filters, artful vignettes and a square-frame layout gave your ordinary snaps a pleasingly nostalgic Polaroid appeal. But 10 years later, barely anyone remembers Hipstamatic. It was a different photo-sharing app, which launched snapping at Hipstamatic’s heels on 6 October 2010, that went on to change the world. Last month more than 1 billion people posted photos on Instagram.You probably wouldn’t have predicted, from the co-founder of Instagram Mike Krieger’s first post, that you were witnessing the birth of a cultural and economic phenomenon. It was a shot of San Francisco’s South Beach harbour viewed through the industrial-chic steel-framed windows of Pier 38. Only the composition, tilted so that the boat masts angled at 45 degrees, hinted at ambition beyond the pedestrian. But a decade later, Instagram has rewired society. It has changed how we look, what we eat, our relationships, how we vote, where we go on holiday and what we spend our money on. From the Kardashians to avocados to mental health, many stories of the past decade are part of the story of Instagram. Continue reading...

Speaking at a campaign rally in North Carolina, the US president told supporters he had a duty to nominate a candidate to fill the supreme court vacancy created by the death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg. 'It will be a woman,' Trump said. 'A very talented, very brilliant woman.'Democrats including Joe Biden and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez have said Republicans should follow the precedent that GOP legislators set in 2016 by refusing to consider a supreme court choice in the run-up to an electionTrump vows to nominate a woman for US supreme court vacancy within a week'I will fight!': mourners' vow at supreme court vigil for Ruth Bader Ginsburg Continue reading...

Security forces will not remain anonymous, anti-Lukashenko protesters sayAnonymous hackers leaked the personal data of 1,000 Belarusian police officers in retaliation for a crackdown on street demonstrations against the veteran president, Alexander Lukashenko, as protesters staged another mass rally.“As the arrests continue, we will continue to publish data on a massive scale,” said a statement distributed by the opposition news channel Nexta Live on the messaging app Telegram. “No one will remain anonymous, even under a balaclava.” Continue reading...

India now has 5.4m cases; China fears winter infections; NZ records new casesCall for stronger measures as UK daily cases hit four-month highMarathon man: Victorian premier briefs media for 77 days running – videoMutant virus: should we be worried that Sars-CoV-2 is changing 12.33pm BST Hi. Caroline Davies here, taking over the blog for a short time. You can get in touch on caroline.davies@theguardian.come 12.03pm BST Researchers around the world are racing to develop a vaccine against Covid-19, with more than 170 candidate vaccines now tracked by the World Health Organization (WHO).Vaccines normally require years of testing and additional time to produce at scale, but scientists are hoping to develop a coronavirus vaccine within 12 to 18 months. Continue reading...

France, Germany and UK says Washington does not have the authority, setting up clashEuropean leaders have warned the US that its claim to have the authority to reimpose sweeping UN-mandated sanctions on Iran has no effect in law, setting up a major legal clash that could lead to Washington imposing sanctions on its European allies.In a joint statement on Sunday, France, Germany and the UK (E3) said any attempt by the US to impose its own sanctions on countries not complying with the reimposed UN ones was also legally void. Continue reading...

President, McConnell and Graham: nomination will proceedSenate minority leader Schumer: ‘Nothing is off the table’‘I will fight!’: mourners’ vow at supreme court vigil Opinion: Democrats can still have the last laughThe resistance movement forged in the early days of Donald Trump’s presidency now faces perhaps its greatest challenge: keeping open a supreme court vacancy that, if filled, will cement a conservative majority for decades to come. Related: Rushing to replace Ruth Bader Ginsburg, McConnell shows power trumps principle Continue reading...

In Almería’s vast farms, migrants pick fruit destined for UK supermarkets. But these ‘essential workers’ live in shantytowns and lack PPE as Covid cases soarPhotographs and drone footage by Ofelia de Pablo and Javier ZuritaIt is the end of another day for Hassan, a migrant worker from Morocco who has spent the past 12 hours under a sweltering late summer sun harvesting vegetables in one of the vast greenhouses of Almería, southern Spain.The vegetables he has dug from the red dirt are destined for dinner plates all over Europe. UK supermarkets including Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Asda, Lidl and Aldi all source fruit and vegetables from Almería. The tens of thousands of migrant workers working in the province are vital to the Spanish economy and pan-European food supply chains. Throughout the pandemic, they have held essential worker status, labouring in the fields while millions across the world sheltered inside. Continue reading...

Port Macquarie MP’s move comes after Nationals MP John Barilaro threatened to implode the Coalition if concessions were not made over koala policyThe New South Wales Nationals MP Leslie Williams has quit the party as the fallout from the koala policy saga rolls on.In a statement, the Port Macquarie MP revealed she has applied to join the NSW division of the Liberal party. Continue reading...

Exclusive: social media hashtag #thinkingforyourself bolsters residents refusing to follow rulesCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageCovid scepticism in Bolton has led to it having the highest infection rate of coronavirus in the country, a local MP has said, as a #thinkingforyourself social media trend gains traction.With 169 cases for every 100,000 people, the Greater Manchester town has the highest rate in England and has featured among the worst-hit areas in Europe. Health officials said infections had been doubling every four days. Continue reading...

About 15,000 to 20,000 Argentinians are estimated to have moved to Uruguay since the pandemic beganAgustina Valls’ phone is ringing off the hook.“It started as a trickle when the pandemic first hit Argentina, but now we’re getting over 20 calls a day,” she said from her office in Uruguay’s luxury beach resort of Punta Del Este.Valls runs a thriving business guiding well-off Argentinians through the red tape of acquiring Uruguayan residence – a skill she learned arranging her own residency application after marrying a Uruguayan lawyer last October. Continue reading...

Funding used to protect workers will expire on 30 September, and airlines have already announced huge layoffsUS airlines are facing what one leading analyst calls a “Thelma and Louise” moment as the industry approaches a government-funding deadline that could decide its future.On 30 September a government aid packages used to protect workers expires, the airlines have already announced huge layoffs but what comes next could be even worse. Continue reading...